Electrocardiogram (EKG) systems are typically utilized to detect and record electrical activity of a heart of a subject over a period of time. For example, an EKG system detects a voltage between electrical potentials detected at two or more surfaces of a subject. The voltage can measure a certain angle of the electrical axis of the heart or an anatomical area of the heart.
Typically, EKG systems are used with a 12 lead EKG. The 12 lead EKG measures voltage at twelve different angles of the electrical axis of the heart. In a conventional 12 lead EKG, ten separate and distinct electrodes are placed on ten different and specific surfaces of the subject simultaneously. Each of the ten separate and distinct electrodes are connected to a computing device. Each of the ten separate and distinct electrodes detect electrical potentials at a corresponding surface of the subject.
The computing device uses the detected electrical potentials to determine twelve different voltages. For example, the computing device can determine the three limb leads (e.g., limb I, limb II, and limb III), the three augmented limb leads (e.g., aVR, aVL, and aVF), and the six precordial leads (e.g., the voltage between the six chest electrode placements and Wilson's central terminal). The term “lead” in electrocardiography in the context of what the computing device determines refers to the 12 different vectors along which the heart's depolarization is measured and recorded.
The computing device then generates a report including a graphical representation of the voltage of each lead as a function of time. Typically, each lead has a specific location on the generated report.